A Tale of Two States, or: If They’re Going to Recall Walker, What’ll They Do to Brown?

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – California’s budget deficit has swelled to a projected $16 billion – much larger than had been predicted just months ago – and will force severe cuts to schools and public safety if voters fail to approve tax increases in November, Gov. Jerry Brown said Saturday.

The Democratic governor said the shortfall grew from $9.2 billion in January in part because tax collections have not come in as high as expected and the economy isn’t growing as fast as hoped for. The deficit has also risen because lawsuits and federal requirements have blocked billions of dollars in state cuts.

Gov. Scott Walker’s administration released improved budget projections Thursday that would leave [Wisconsin] with a $154.5 million surplus a year from now.

Coming less than four weeks before Walker’s June 5 recall election, the projections take the state from a previously estimated $143 million budget deficit in its main account through June 2013 to the surplus.

…The new budget projections were released Thursday by Walker’s administration secretary, Mike Huebsch. He said the state would close out the two-year budget period on June 30, 2013, with a $154.5 million surplus. In addition, the state is expected to contribute an additional $45.4 million to its rainy-day fund that would add to the state’s budget cushion, he wrote in a memo to Walker.

The improved projections come in part from recent data showing employment in the third quarter of 2011 was better than originally reported, Revenue Secretary Richard Chandler said in another memo released Thursday.

Here’s one statistic that it’s going to be tough for Democrats to get around this year: Taxes on the median home in Wisconsin fell for the first time in 12 years, according to figures from the state Department of Revenue. The first property tax decrease since 1999 was due largely to the policies and budget created by Gov. Scott Walker.